Parties face ‘disintegration’ as turncoats galore

ISLAMABAD - Country’s major political parties face disintegration as former and current lawmakers have started changing loyalties much prior to the general election, breaking the political tradition where jumping off the ship normally takes place weeks before the polls.

Almost all major political parties in the country’s political arena were witnessing this revolt.

Generally, the political parties faced these testing moments ahead of elections but, this time around, the change is palpable ahead of nine months going to the polls.

Some of the political parties’ members have openly drawn the line, while the rest are hinting to part ways before the 2018 general election.

The dissident members in the individual capacity or in the shape of any group have received ‘good news’ from Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) in the case of Ayesha Gulalai, as she will continue to remain MNA despite strong opposition from the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf.

Almost all the major political parties have been seeing ‘tacit revolt’ or an open tirade against party’s policies due to different reasons.

The ruling party PML-N, in the current political tittle-tattle, is on the top for facing disintegration in the near future. The formation of a ‘forward bloc’ comprising around 80 members is mostly being discussed in the media with different angles.

The party lawmakers including ministers, mostly from South Punjab, had also staged a walkout against their own party over the alleged Intelligence Bureau’s report, establishing their link with proscribed organizations.

The recent diatribe of Minister for Inter-Provincial Coordination Riaz Pirzada, in and outside the Parliament, over the alleged IB list and his remarks about former prime minister Nawaz Sharif has reportedly rung alarm bells for the party’s leadership.

Likewise, the Pakistan People’s Party, the major opposition party in the National Assembly, has continuously been seeing ‘change of loyalties’ from its members.

Many former lawmakers including Nazar Gondal, Firdous Ashiq Awan, Noor Alam Khan and others have said goodbye to the party in the recent past.

Recently, Waseem Afzal Chan, the brother of Nadeem Afzal Chan, has also joined the PTI. Some others from the PML-N and the PPP are reportedly in touch with the PTI’s leadership to join it ahead of the general election.

The PTI, the third opposition party, has also been facing this dilemma even before its ‘sit-in’ before the parliament.

MNAs like Nasir Khattak (NA-15), late Gulzar Khan (NA-4) and Ms Musarrat Zeb (reserved seat) had also faced attempts from the party leadership to de-seat the for allegedly violating the party discipline.

Recently, Ayesha Gulali has also emerged as a dissident member of the PTI and now she also survived an attempt from the party to de-seat her.

The Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan, the fourth opposition party, is also set to submit applications in the National Assembly, the Sindh Assembly and the ECP to de-seat MPs, who after leaving their party have joined the Pak-Sarzamin Party (PSP).

Several lawmakers including three MNAs have so far left the party and joined the PSP led by former Karachi mayor Mustafa Kamal. MNAs Salman Baloch, Sufyan Yusuf and Asif and MPAs Irtaza Khalil, Muhammad Dilawar, Nadeem Rizvi, Sheikh Abdullah, Bilqees Mukhtar, Mahmood Abdul Razaque, Sagheer Ahmed and Iftikhar Ahmed have been speaking against the party of late.

Although the Jamaat-e-Islami, the fifth opposition party, has four members in the National Assembly, it’s one MNA Sher Akbar from Buner has reportedly hinted to leave the party before the next elections.

Political pundits viewed that a group of nearly 100 members might also shift loyalties after getting the development funds from the party. These members might tender resignation and appear in the next elections as a powerful ‘independent group’.

They said that the disintegration would further accentuate as the next general election closes by. Talking to The Nation, former ECP secretary Kanwar Dilshad said that the “ECP has let loose Parliament today”.

While talking about the ECP’s recent decision about Gulalai, Dilshad said the parliamentarians will be free to make decisions according to their ‘conscience’.

The ECP Tuesday rejected a reference filed by the PTI chief against MNA Gulalai seeking to de-seat her for "violation of party rules".

Political and constitutional gurus say that the ECP’s decision regarding Gulali could be considered as a ‘good news’ for the dissident members of any political party as attempts to de-seat them (for violation of discipline and authority) might not prove fruitful.